butter up
Obere Mittelstufe (B2) informal
To say very nice things to someone because you want them to do something for you.
"He spent the whole morning buttering up his manager before asking for an extra week of holiday."
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10 English Idioms with Meanings You CAN’T Guess
Adam’s English Lessons · engVid · 0:55
So, you would "butter up your boss", you would "butter up your teacher", you
10 English Idioms with Meanings You CAN’T Guess
Adam’s English Lessons · engVid · 0:59
would "butter up a co-worker"; and then, later, you will ask for some sort of